Mild success is a seductive foe. Perhaps you initially put in some extremely hard work, late nights, failed products, unexpected wins…you road the roller coaster that is starting a new endeavor. Now you find yourself cruising along, more or less on auto-pilot. There is a part of you that is comforted by this drama-free existence but the yearning for the next great thing is getting pretty hard to ignore.

It’s time to take things up a notch (or ten)…

Don’t Fear the Unknown

And I don’ t mean the…”oooh, what will happen if I fail” unknown. I mean literally, the stuff you don’t know how to do; be it web design, slick financial analysis or building a new book shelf. Don’t set the expectation that you have to know how to complete each step in perfect detail before getting started. Learn by doing, not learning to do.

Embrace OJT

On-the-job-training is probably something you haven’t thought of in years. As a seasoned professional you go into a company with the expectation that you will be the provider of knowledge, not the recipient. Flip the script; you won’t truly understand how a site is designed until you do it yourself.

Befriend Failure

Being recognized as a Thought Leader is not purely the product of always having the right answer at the right time. What truly sets you apart is your ability to go through adversity and come out the other side with an awesome strategy; for not just coping but thriving. Without failures you will be robbed of the opportunity to test your mettle.

Personal growth is a vital aspect of success and happiness. Embrace your inner risk-taker, thought leader, innovator and try something new…ready or not!